FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has released draft guidelines for the installation of EV chargers, with a target of 300,000 units by 2030. This is double the previous target of 150,000 units and 10X higher than the current number of installations. The company is calling for the installation of chargers in commercial facilities.
The draft guidelines also call on operators to improve the speed of charging and the convenience of operation. To achieve decarbonization, the government is pushing to expand the installation of rechargers, which had only about 30,000 units as of March 2023.
The installation target includes 270,000 regular chargers at commercial facilities and 30,000 fast chargers on highways. The introduction of a new charging method called “plug-and-charge” will also be encouraged. This is a system in which vehicles can be authenticated and charged simply by plugging them into the charger; it has been adopted by Tesla in the United States. The system eliminates the need to hold a membership card over the charger or use a smartphone app to authenticate personal information.
Source: The Nikkei
PSR Analysis: Let’s look at the domestic penetration rate of EVs. According to data released by the Japan Automobile Dealers Association, the number of new EVs (standard passenger cars only, excluding minicars) sold in 2022 will be about 31,600. Sales in 2020 and 2021 were about 15,000 and 21,000 units, respectively, so the growth rate is about 150% year-on-year.
However, EVs account for only about 1.42% of the total, as the total sales volume of standard passenger cars is about 2.22 million units. The lack of charging stations has been cited as a reason why buyers are not choosing EVs. This is especially true in rural areas where EVs are not an option.
METI’s announcement of an increase in this target is an indication of its desire to improve this situation. Since it is difficult for automakers alone to create such an environment, it is natural for the government to take the initiative, and improving the convenience of the environment in which EVs are used is an essential condition for their widespread use. PSR
Akihiro Komuro is Research Analyst, Far East and Southeast Asia, for Power Systems Research
